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Reality is hard; virtual reality shouldn't be, too. But alas, it is: making movies with Apple's QuickTime VR technology has historically been a black art that requires photographic expertise, a steamer trunk's worth of equipment, and the patience to deal with software whose interface only a programmer could love. But since QuickTime VR debuted, the tools have improved some. Making top-quality movies containing multiple nodes (locations) isn't much easier than it was at the beginning, but a great many people aren't interested in making such movies. Lots of folks just want to create good-looking, single-node panoramics to post on a Web site, use in a presentation, or impress a friend. As a member of this club, I'm happy to report that the phrase "casual QuickTime VR author" is no longer an oxymoron. Apple has released some free utilities that streamline the process of combining a collection of images into a panoramic movie. Getting the best results still means buying Apple's $495 QuickTime VR Authoring Tools package, but if you're willing to tolerate some visible artifacts where the images meet, you can make panoramics by combining one of these free utilities with any image editor. My January 1997 "Media" column is the first installment of a two-part series on QuickTime VR. Part one deals with panoramic movies; part two focuses on object movies. If you haven't read the column, you can read its online version on Macworld Online. After you've read the column, you can use your browser's Back button or Go menu to return to this page. (Tip: Because my column always relies heavily on graphics and how-to illustrations, you'll get more out of it by reading the print edition of Macworld.)

WHAT'S IN THIS MONTH'S HOTMEDIA

This installment of HotMedia includes links to sample QuickTime VR movies located here on Heidsite as well as links to additional information on QuickTime VR.

PANORAMIC MOVIES ON HEIDSITE

My Virtual Mendocino(tm) pages contain numerous QuickTime VR movies of California's scenic Mendocino coast (where Heidsite is located!). Most were made with the equipment described in my column.

SITES, SAMPLES, UTILITIES, AND MORE

Joel's QuickTime VR Workbook -- Joel Cannon's unofficial QuickTime VR support site is a superb source for tips, utilities, and QTVR resources. Apple's QuickTime VR Site -- The official QuickTime VR site, from which you can download free authoring tools (including the ones discussed in my column), visit sites containing QuickTime VR movies, learn how to add QuickTime VR movies to Web pages, and much more. QuickTimeFAQ.org -- Chuck Wiltgen's site is another excellent source for QuickTime VR utilities and QuickTime resources in general. Kaidan -- The company that makes the panoramic tripod heads and accessories described in my column. Peace River Studios -- Another source for panoramic tripod heads and hardware accessories. QTVR.com -- Tilman Hampl's site, based in Germany, provides a searchable archive of the QuickTime mailing list, a directory of QuickTime VR service providers, QuickTime VR movies, and much more. Seitz Switzerland -- Makers of a panoramic camera called the Round Shot. Globuscope -- Another panoramic camera. A QuickTime VR Tutorial -- This one appeared in DV magazine's November 1995 issue. It's a bit dated, but still useful. Armchair Travel -- This UK-based site contains a wealth of QuickTime VR movies. The links page will get you to lots of sites containing QuickTime VR movies. (George Ryon's Computer Smart page also has a nice list of QuickTime VR links.)